Thane, February 27 The crime branch of the Navi Mumbai police has arrested a 34-year-old man for allegedly impersonating an ISRO scientist and a PWD official to defraud and sexually exploit several women after promising to marry them.
Adarsh Prashant Mhatre, a resident of Alibag, allegedly used over a dozen aliases to lure highly educated women, including engineers and doctors, through popular matrimonial sites like Shaadi.com, Bharat Matrimony, and Jeevansathi.com, a police release said.
He is suspected of defrauding women of a total of Rs 89.40 lakh.
Mhatre allegedly created accounts on matrimonial sites using fake identity cards of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Public Works Department, and uploaded photos showing a luxurious lifestyle, including visits to five-star hotels, the release said.
"The accused would establish a relationship under the guise of marriage. He then coerced the victims into taking pre-approved personal loans for investment in property or houses. Once the loan amount was transferred to his accounts, he would sexually abuse the victims before disappearing," the police statement said.
He used the money to fund a lavish lifestyle, including trips to casinos in Goa. In some instances, he used money taken from new victims to pay the EMIs of previous victims to avoid suspicion, the statement said.
An investigation began after a case was registered at Rabale Police Station in August 2025, and Mhatre was arrested on February 20. A court remanded him in police custody until March 4, the release said.
Mhatre is alleged to have been involved in at least six such cases registered in Navi Mumbai (Rabale and Panvel city police stations), Thane (Manpada police station), Mumbai (Wadala and V P Road police stations) and Pune (Yerawada police station).
Further, he has a criminal record dating back to 2019, including cases of cheating, forgery and molestation registered at police stations in Mumbai, Thane and Raigad.
He is currently booked under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including sections 64 (rape), 69 (sexual intercourse on deceitful promise of marriage), 318(4) (cheating), and 319(2) (cheating by personation), the release said.